MGM and Paramount Pictures have released the first trailer for Ben-Hur, a new adaptation of Lew Wallace’s classic novel. Directed by Wanted and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter helmer Timur Bekmambetov, the film tells the epic story of Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston), a prince falsely accused of treason by his brother Messala (Toby Kebbell).

This first look certainly lacks the subtlety and, at times, quiet focus of Ridley Scott's Gladiator or William Wyler's excellent adaptation of the same source material, but it's nowhere near as ostentatious as the year's latest desert-set picture, Gods of Egypt. So while I'm fully aware that this iteration of Ben-Hur won't be counted as a contender come this year's Oscar talk, it's a bit less sinful than I expected a modern-day adaptation of religious-themed fiction to be. The action centerpiece of this film, as teased in the trailer, is the classic chariot race, a sequence that looks to be worth the price of admission if Bekmambetov's previous films are any indication.

Image via MGM/Paramount[/caption]